Social Justice Initiative

He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

A new initiative has started at Bethlehem. Strengthened by our love for all God’s creation and recognizing the urgency to act, a social justice initiative committee has been established to work for our goal to advance positive change in our church, our community, and our world. We invite all who are interested to participate with this committee—through education as well as action in the myriad issues facing us as Christians in our world today.

Opportunity for Participation

We invite everyone to participate with us. We meet on the 3rd Sunday of every month at 11:30 a.m. on Zoom or in-person in the Fireside room. For more information, please contact Jane L (janelahman@hotmail.com) or Margot H (nordatter@gmail.com).

Date: Sunday, April 16
Time: 11:30 a.m.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81184599825?pwd=WmhMY3I3ZUxoR0lOWnMzMldsaDJjQT09
Meeting ID: 811 8459 9825
Passcode: SJI2022
To dial by phone only: 253 215 8782
Meeting ID: 811 8459 9825
Passcode: 4026538

Immigration Focus Group
We meet every fourth Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. via zoom. To join, contact Cathy G. at cegood47@aol.com. All are welcome to join.

We explore ways in which Bethlehem can help immigrants coming into Denver (as well as other immigrant issues), and we’d love your help. Because of the current critical need, the group will initially focus on ways to help the immigrants coming into Denver.

Opportunity to Serve

¿ Hablo Español ?
A new group at Bethlehem has recently been formed to explore ways to help the immigrants streaming across the border from Central and South America. Hundreds of them have come and will be coming to Denver. These strangers among us are of all ages. They are desperate for the basics of living – food, clothing, shelter. They need our hospitality.

Can you help? The Immigration Focus Group is seeking new members who are passionate about helping these “strangers” among us. We are especially looking for someone in the congregation who speaks Spanish. Any level of Spanish skill could be useful to us. The amount of involvement needed will depend on the direction that this effort takes at BLC. It should be noted that there may be other areas of BLC mission work that may need someone with Spanish speaking skills. One of these is the startup of the afternoon snack ministry for neighborhood children.

Will you be one of us? Contact Cathy G. at misssions@bethlehem-lutheran.net

Thank you!
Approximately 500 were donated during the Share the Grace “New Year, New Socks” drive and will be helping to warm the feet of immigrants! Thank you to Mike Smith who delivered them to the organizations distributing them in Denver and thank you to Thrivent who granted an action team card of $250 to support the drive.

Previous Opportunities for Education

Living Faith: Church in Society

Our first educational opportunity for Bethlehem members to increase awareness of social justice issues was scheduled for 2021; an eight week study from the Rocky Mountain Synod entitled Living Faith: Church in Society. We met Wednesdays at 12:30 p.m. the end of April and through May before taking a break for the summer. We plan to pick up again in late September or early October. You can join this study at any time. Missing the first meeting is not critical for the rest of the series; each meeting is self-contained so do not hesitate to join for some or all. Topics include: ELCA Social Statements-Church in Society; Caring for Creation; Economic Life; Immigration; Healthcare; Race, Ethnicity and Culture; and Faith, Sexism and Justice.

Check out the class information at https://www.rmselca.org/living_faith to see what this is all about. If interested in joining the class, please email Margot H (nordatter@gmail.com) or Jane L (janelahman@hotmail.com) to be added to the class contact list.

Additional Information

Information Shared by member:

SJI Reading List
Casa de Paz Information
Information on Border Situation
Reentry Initiative